Watch Clash of the Titans

Perhaps one of the best known films from the gods and monsters period of movies, Clash of the Titans chronicles the adventures of one of Zeus's many children Perseus on his travels as he seeks to become a hero, save the princess and slay one monster with the head of another. Perseus is the bastard son of Zeus and a queen, but the king in his jealousy pushes mother and son out to sea in a coffin. Zeus has the city destroyed by the Kraken, and Perseus and his mother are gently guided to an island where they are safe and happy. We fast forward to Perseus in adulthood, and the events of the gods. Calibos, son of one of the goddesses, is a young and handsome man, engaged to be married to the princess of a city state. But he has murdered Zeus's flying horses, and in retaliation the king of the gods turns Calibos into a deformed monster, exiled to the swamps and wastes. In revenge Calibos's mother transports Perseus to the city of Joppa where this is all happening, making him a player in the game.

Perseus finds out that the princess cannot be wed without a riddle, and he follows her to learn the answer. When he presents himself with the correct riddle, he takes Calibos's place as the fiance. However, Calibos's mother demands sacrifice for the pride of the city, declaring that the princess must be given to the Kraken. Thus Perseus must discover how to kill a being of immense, titanic power. The answer, of course, is with the head of the gorgon Medusa, whose gaze transforms everything to stone.

The film chronicles Perseus's trials as he sails to the edge of the world and beheads the gorgon, fighting his way back to save his bride to be in time. With the Kraken destroyed, and the head thrown aside, Perseus takes his place among the heroes of myth and champions of legend, his story told and his marriage assured.